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It's All in How You Look at It: A History of F/X - Page 2

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3. Another way to use stop-motion involves stopping the camera at various points in a scene, advancing the action and turning the camera back on. An actor will then appear to pop in and out of existence, each time at a different place.

4. The fourth effect provided by stop-motion is known as pixillation. By shooting objects or people one frame at a time or by removing frames from a filmed scene, the action in the scene appears jerky and quick. The infamous eating scene in Tom Jones is a prime example of this effect.

5. When most people hear "stop-motion," they think of this final category. A flexible model is filmed in short segments of one or more frames and is moved slightly between each shoot. When the film is run at speed, the model appears to move. The more and the smaller the incremental changes, the more natural the movement. Apply the process to a series of drawings and you have The Lion King.

Next week, we will explore stop-motion and its masters, such as Willis O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen. Meantime, consider visiting these sites for additional information on Méliès:

Michael Brooke has a beautifully organized website dedicated to artist-filmmaker Jan Svankmajer, who claims Georges Méliès as one of his primary film influences.

Les Amis de Georges Méliès is a stunning website based in Belgium. Access it through Google for a translation if you don't read French.

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Resources:

1. Sarris, Andrew, editor; The St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia; Visible Ink Press; Detroit; 1998
2. Law, Jonathan, editor; Cassell Companion to the Cinema; Cassell; London; 1997
3. Konigsberg, Ira; The Complete Film Dictionary; Meridian Publishing; New York, NY; 1989

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